Here’s another reason to love those sweet, crunchy, orange-colored sticks: A new study suggests that premenopausal women who eat carotenoid-rich vegetables every day may lower their risk of developing breast cancer. Carotenoid veggies, including carrots, kale and green leafy vegetables, have powerful antioxidant properties.

The study tracked the diets of 6,389 healthy women and 5,707 women with invasive breast cancer. Researchers found that eating at least two servings of carotenoid-rich vegetables a day reduced the risk by 17%, compared to the healthy women.The study’s lead researcher notes that most risk factors for breast cancer are out of a woman’s control, including the age she started menstruating and how old she was when she had her first child. But a diet is a risk factor that women can reduce.

However, a carotenoid-rich diet didn’t reduce the risk of breast cancer for post menopausal women, say researchers, because they believe that carotenoids interfere with estrogen signaling.